GM Buys Stake in High-Tech Steelmaker

General Motors Co.'s venture capital unit has acquired an unspecified holding in Providence, R.l.-based NanoSteel Co., a 10-year-old developer of high-strength nano-structured sheet steel.

The privately held company says it has developed a new class of cold-formable sheet steel that could allow thinner, stronger and significantly lighter components, thus helping carmakers reduce vehicle weight and improve fuel economy.

NanoSteel touts its technology as a less expensive alternative to such lightweight materials as aluminum and carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic. The company says the investment by GM Motors Ventures LLC will help it accelerate the final development phase of its steel.